


The past is knocking on my door

by Maicaly



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Blood and Injury, Gen, Human Experimentation, Hurt Peter Parker, Kidnapping, Obaiah Stane Is Alive And An Asshole, Peter Parker Whump, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Tony Stark, Psychological Torture, Recovery, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Torture, Violence, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-27 06:01:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30118263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maicaly/pseuds/Maicaly
Summary: Peter and Tony are kidnapped, apparently by a mad scientist who wants to experiment on Peter. What they don't know, is that Tony's past is behind the cell's door, ready to make them live through their worst nightmare.-“No touching until the light turns green. If it turns red, return the specimen to the corner of the room and leave it there” the man said, not looking up at Tony. “You can’t share your food with it, as it has an special diet. It doesn’t go in the bed, only the floor. Marcus will pick it up in the morning and return at night. As long as the light is green, it’s yours to do whatever you want.”“Who the fuck are you?” Tony growled, his own heart aching at the way he kept referring to Peter as ‘it’. The boy didn’t move from his place. “You better let us go, because if you don’t I promise I’m gonna destroy this place with you in it.”“Of course, breaking any of this rules would get a punishment” the man said, ignoring Tony.
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 20
Kudos: 93





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've been reading lots of kidnapping and torture irondad fics so here I am, creating once more suffering and pain for the characters I love most in the world. Please read the tags and warnings before reading!!
> 
> WARNINGS: Blood, violence, mentions of torture, threats of rape, people being really REALLY mean to Peter, panic.

Tony doesn’t remember much about being taken, or the moments before. He thinks he was going to pick up Peter to have their weekly lab session, or maybe he had finished a meeting and was walking out of the tower. He doesn’t even remember the day he was taken, how long has it been in that rusty, dark cell that is driving him mad. Because there is nothing to do; for the first time in the history of kidnappings, the victim isn’t tortured for information, and no one has asked him to build anything for them. He gets feed two times every day, enough food to keep a small ration for later. There is a bucket for his necessities, and a small bed in the corner to sleep.

It’s not bad. But for Tony, it’s worse. He would have preferred getting water boarded again, having the hole of his chest reopened or being torn into parts. Because watching Peter being treated like a dog, a pest and an experiment is breaking him apart. 

The kid has been with him since the moment he woke up. Tony noticed something wrong the moment Peter didn’t fight back when the black suited man came. The mechanic knows Peter can beat him, no matter how big or strong he is – but he stayed quiet, cold sweat dripping down his forehead and pale faced. They took him, Tony screamed his throat raw and punched the door until he broke one or two knuckles. He got nothing, until what he supposed was night time. 

The same man dragged Peter inside the cell and threw him to the corner of the room, where the boy hid in a small ball. Tony couldn’t reach him before another, shorter man stepped into the room and started talking.

“No touching until the light turns green. If it turns red, return the specimen to the corner of the room and leave it there” the man said, not looking up at Tony. “You can’t share your food with it, as it has an special diet. It doesn’t go in the bed, only the floor. Marcus will pick it up in the morning and return at night. As long as the light is green, it’s yours to do whatever you want.”

“Who the fuck are you?” Tony growled, his own heart aching at the way he kept referring to Peter as ‘it’. The boy didn’t move from his place. “You better let us go, because if you don’t I promise I’m gonna destroy this place with you in it.”

“Of course, breaking any of this rules would get a punishment” the man said, ignoring Tony. “You get a minute after the light turns red, and if you don’t return it, the specimen gets something removed. If you give it your food, it won’t eat for two days. If it touches the bed, it loses a hand. And if you, Mr Stark, try and stop Marcus from picking the specimen, it won’t be returned for the night.”

“His name is _Peter_ ” Tony finally received a glance from the man, and something in his chest became smaller at the pale, deep blue eyes that he had. “You talk a lot of shit but you haven’t answered my question. Who the fuck are you?”

“Doctor Andrew at your service, Mr Stark” Andrew smiled, and it remined Tony to a creepy lifeless doll. “I hope that, as a scientist yourself, you understand and cooperate with the circumstances of the situation”

“Get your gorilla away from my kid and I’ll let you know how much cooperation I’ll be having” 

Andrew gave him a full belly laugh, and pulled the notebook he had been reading close to his chest. Out of the horrific cell, Tony wouldn’t have given the man a second glance – even if his presence rings a bell. Thick black hair, medium height, well-built and with a clean, pale face. He didn’t look like a scientist at all, if it wasn’t for the white lab coat. Tony really wanted to wrap his hands around his neck and wipe that smug smile off his face. Whatever they had done to Peter, had left the boy rocking himself in the corner, shying away from the strangers. 

Before Andrew could answer, a small light Tony hadn’t noticed before turned green, and all three men present turned to look at it. Marcus moved away from Peter and held the door open for the doctor. Those blue, cold eyes fixed on Tony again.

“I wish we had more time, but a specimen bad rested is no good. Take care of it for me, Mr Stark, and please follow the rules” Andrew didn’t drop the smile as he said his next words. “It’s really easy to squash a spider, accidentally or not. And I have lots of things planned for our little insect” 

-

Tony learns the lesson quickly after the first night. Peter doesn’t talk, just buries himself in Tony’s chest when he gently picks the boy from the ground. It’s not that he listens to the doctor and avoids the bed; Peter doesn’t let him get close to it. They end up laying on the floor, as shivers run Peter’s body. After a quick assessment, Tony discovers two things – two punctures on the insides of his elbows, and four out of five fingers of his left foot crushed. Even if they don’t talk, Tony understands that Peter has been giving something from the moment they got taken to keep him at bay. 

The next morning, he makes the mistake of trying to keep Marcus from getting to Peter. He lands two good punches before he discovers no one is going to lay a hand on him. Before he can give the third punch, another man walks in and steps on Peter’s broken fingers, making the boy cry out and call Tony’s name for the first time. 

No one brings Peter for the night, and Tony finally gives an involuntary long blink when his body can’t scream anymore. He eats what he’s giving before throwing the rest to the bin, too disgusted with the safety he’s offered while Peter is being experimented on. He’s awake and aware when Peter is brought to the cell the third night, and decides to wait until the light is green just in case. It doesn’t mean it’s easy or doesn’t break his heart. Because this time, Peter is awake and aware.

“Just a little longer, buddy” Tony tries to console him, looking to the red light. “I’m sure it’ll be turning green in no time”

“Mister Stark” Peter says again, his body shaking so bad he can’t stay still. “Mister Stark, they – they – t-they did… h-he did i-it”

“What did he do?” Tony alternates between glaring at the light and looking softly at Peter. “Did they drugged you again? Do you feel funny?”

“H-He took them off” Peter breaks off in a sob, and extends the arm that isn’t holding his middle towards Tony. “I want – I, M-Mister Stark”

“I know, I know. The light is still red” Tony clenches and unclenches his fist, debating if he can really risk comforting Peter. He looks so small and vulnerable that Tony almost forgets he’s spiderman and not just a scared, vulnerable teenager. His teenager. “Peter. Baby. What did he take? Are you hurt?”

Peter doesn’t answer, because he’s busy trying to breath and reach for Tony at the same time. His pupils are blown up, from a contusion or the drugs, Tony doesn’t know. And he still has the same pale colour and beads of sweat running down his forehead. Maybe it’s his impression, but since the last time he saw him, Peter looks skinner. Smaller. Sicker.

“Come on, Peter” he makes an effort to use his name as many times as he can, because he’s sure neither Andrew nor Marcus talk to him as if he’s more than a lab rat. “Kid, I’m gonna be with you in a moment. I promise. It’ll be alright. I’ll give you a big hug – this time for real, no grabbing the door for you or any shit excuse. Okay, Peter? Buddy?”

Peter nods to every word, but still inches closer. Just when Tony thinks he’s going to combust if he doesn’t touch him, there is a ‘blink’ noise and the light turns green.

“Mister Stark”

“Come here” Tony quickly gathers the teen on his arms, and confirms with a heavy heart that he’s thinner than what he remembers. Somehow, he fits in a tight ball in Tony’s lap, and fists his wrinkled shirt like a scared toddler. “I’ve got you, Pete. You’re safe. I’ve got you”

“My – my foot. I-it hurts so bad” Peter chokes a sob as Tony slowly moves him around with careful hands. “The toes healed, a-and he wanted to see if they c-could heal rebroken. A-And they… they…”

Peter doesn’t finish his sentence, and hides himself on Tony’s shoulder. The man takes out his shoe slowly, surprised when Peter cries out in pain and the shoe has some trouble coming off. They are a worn out sneakers that Tony can’t get him to throw out, probably because it’s the last thing Ben gave him before dying. It takes a while to calm Peter down, and Tony doesn’t shame himself in kissing Peter’s forehead and running slow hands through his head. He shares a lonely tear with the kid passes out, and takes out the shoe.

As Peter has said, the toes are broken again; this time, all of them. Tony knows that Peter can re-heal broken bones wrong, and how much it hurts when the bone traps a piece of muscle or a nerve, acting like a clamp. Not that Andrew cares about it, Tony discovers when he feels a small bump on his thumb-toe. The worst part, the thing that make Tony pulls Peter body away and barely keep the slice of bread he ate away, is the missing nails.

Peter has said that he had taken them off, and Tony can only guess he wanted to see if they would grow again. His feet is bloody and swollen, the missing nails making it look gore. They all look ripped off, not cut, from the root, and some of them are still bleeding. No matter how gross the sight is, or how he would have ran off in a second if it were anyone else. Tony brushed a careful finger over the wounds, collecting the falling blood.

“I’m sorry” Tony whispers to no one, as he cradles Peter closer to him. He buries his face on the sweaty curls. “I’m so sorry, Peter. I’m sorry”

Tony cries.

-

Tony keeps count on the ‘nights’ they bring Peter in, and marks them as days on the wall with the fork he’s given. Counting the first night he got Peter back as the first day, they have been there for a week now. It’s a lot of time for a mad man to destroy a teenager, and Andrew hasn’t lost a day. After the night when everything came crashing down on Tony, he tries to keep himself obedient so Peter doesn’t get punished. The boy himself isn’t aware most of the time he’s brought in, so Tony can only do so much. Since the first ‘experiment’, many have come.

Peter’s toes healed correctly, and his nails grew again. Andrew ripped off the nails of his fingers too, which were still growing. On the fourth night, Peter came with tiny blades on his right arm, that Tony couldn’t take out – Marcus made that clear when he tried and the man broke into the cell, stabbing another one on his leg. Peter explained to him softly that Andrew wanted to see if he could heal around a blade or not; turned out, he could, and they had the open his skin to take them off.

On the fifth night, the stab wounds were small, white fissures on his arm. That was the worst night for Tony until now – because Andrew decided to test how much Peter could eat, and when the boy couldn’t open his mouth anymore, they force fed him. He kept holding Peter as he pucked everything he had on his stomach for the whole night, until there was nothing more and Peter vomited _blood_.

On the sixth night, Marcus dropped a naked, frozen Peter that couldn’t hold himself still. Tony took off his own clothes and wrapped the boy close, while he left bruises on his forearms from how hard he was gripping Tony. He tries consoling Peter as hard as he can, and he even gets to enjoy a small conversation with him. Turns out, he has been locked in a freezer the whole day – and when he passed out from the cold, they tried to fry him with hot air. Without thinking too much, he wraps his shirt closer to Peter.

He makes the first mistake the next morning. 

When the light turns red, he leaves a sleeping Peter on the corner. He wakes the boy up, and enjoys the last seconds of comfort. 

“I’m getting a little tired of this” Peter mumbles, leaning against the hand Tony has on his cheek. It’s hollow, and cold. 

“I know, Peter” Tony whispers back. He feels his body aching because of the position of holding Peter for the night, but he doesn’t complain. He has all the time of the world while his boy is out there being experimented on. “Just – stay quiet, don’t talk back. I’ll see you at night” 

“Because they’re coming, right?” Peter no longer has that hopeful look when he first asked, when he joked with Tony how bad Andrew and Marcus were screwed. “The avengers are coming?”

“They’re taking their sweet time, but that’s probably because Steve doesn’t know how to use GPS. Old man things. He still uses a map” 

He doesn’t talk about how his own hope is getting smaller as the days pass. He doesn’t doubt Rhodey is looking for them, or even Vision. But he is starting to think the avengers aren’t. After all, Steve and he ended in a quite bad place in Siberia, Natasha thinks very little of him, and the team might as well have disappeared. But he can’t say that to Peter, the boy who is being experimented on and tortured every day while Tony stays safe and sound in the cell. 

“I miss my bed” Peter mumbles, looking at the small cot behind Tony. They have already talked about it, and they both agree that it’s not worth the risk. Tony moves his hand when the minute is at the last second, and Peter’s head moves a little with it. 

“You can lay on it for weeks if you want to. I think you deserve a break from highschool” 

“Yeah” Peter gives him a lazy smile. “You might have to call them, though. I think I missed the Spanish test”

Tony can’t answer, or relish on Peter’s smile. The door opens and Tony gets up, surprised to see Andrew accompanying Marcus. He hasn’t seen the man since the first night, where he gave them the rules. And he didn’t remembered how perturbing he is. Andrew is wearing the same impeccable lab coat that hangs loosely from his frame, a pocket with a single pen on the left side. He’s carrying the mysterious notebook and looks healthier than before. He gives them both a smile and nods to Marcus.

As every day, Marcus walks forward and picks Peter from his forearm. He doesn’t talk, Peter doesn’t resist. Maybe, it’s because Andrew it’s there and Tony can’t even imagine what’s like to face him every morning, to have him loom over you while he carries out his experiments. Peter doesn’t talk about it, but Tony can see the fear when he has to leave, and the terror when he returns. Maybe it’s because last night was hard and Peter is still cold, shivers still surprising him every now and then. Or maybe it’s because, after all, he’s a kid who is being walked through hell and hasn’t broke yet. 

It’s barely a moment, an instance where everything goes wrong. Andrew looks at Peter and Marcus walks him right past Tony, diggin his fingers on his arm. Tony looks at Peter and meets terrified brown eyes; and before he can transmit calm or comfort to them, Peter’s hand shoots to his own and wraps desperately around his wrist. Marcus stops moving and Tony can’t find himself moving away. 

“Does it want daddy to hold it a little bit longer?” Andrew mocks, voice empty of any emotion, after five long seconds. He doesn’t drop the smile. “Let it go, Marcus” 

“Sir- “ 

“Peter-“ Tony tries to talk too, but he doesn’t know what to say. Asking Peter to let him go is out of the table, because he’s barely containing himself from hugging the kid. Thankfully, he doesn’t have to say anything else because Andrew is clear as the day.

“Now, Marcus” he doesn’t have to repeat himself, and Marcus steps away from Peter. No one moves. “It’s understandable, really. It’s scared and it wants his daddy. The pathetic spider thinks it has rights, that it can break the rules and everything keeps going”

“He’s a kid” Tony pleads, begs. He lets it out as a whine, because Peter is his kid and he can’t even hold him when he’s scared. He has to give him to strangers to torture him while he stays here, and even if the ‘daddy’ thing sounds a bit off – he feels Peter like a son. 

“No, be my guest. Hug it”

Tony doesn’t have time to wonder what is the ‘but’ after the permission, what consequences are there if he hugs Peter. The boy throws himself at Tony, wrecking with sobs and cries he doesn’t want to _go_. He’s only wearing an undershirt, since all his clothes are on Peter, but even through the layer of his shirt and jacket that is on Peter, he feels the boy’s heart beating loudly. He let him bury his face on his neck and shoulder, hug his waist and cry freely. It’s not fair – it’s so not fair, for someone like Peter to suffer through something like this. When he should be worrying about things like that Spanish exam or if he will be able to hang out with Ned this weekend if he doesn’t have lots of homework. 

They hug, and the men stare. Marcus looks a bit lost, but he doesn’t say anything, because it’s obvious that the man is only there for support – Andrew, on the other hand, is still smiling wide and unmoving. Again, it should have been a warning sign for Tony; he’s an avenger, he has been kidnapped before, and he should know when there is an immediate threat around. But he’s too busy with an armful of kid. And Peter’s tingle doesn’t even work anymore, because as he described one night, it feels always on edge. 

So none of them can see the third man, the one who stepped on Peter’s fingers, grab Tony by the arm and tear him away from the boy, who is grabbed by Andrew. Tony is knocked unconscious as he sees Peter being dragged away, screaming for him and trashing around. Still, the last thing he can remember before blacking out is the unsettling, permanent smile of Andrew. He suddenly remembers the same smile, many years ago, on a younger face. 

And even if he misses the fourth man entering the cell when he’s unconscious, he knows Andrew has everything to do with Obadiah Stane. 

-

There was a time, where Tony would have remembered Andrew in a beat. Or maybe not, because he used to be drunk enough to forget who he worked with. Andrew Beckett was one of the scientist that belonged to Obadiah’s team, the one who tried to build an armor behind his back. When Tony found out about those who helped Obadiah to try and kill him, he fired them and made sure they would enjoy a life of failed opportunities. Tony remembers very good now, he remembers the face Andrew Beckett gave him as he talked about his newborn baby, about how it was the only work he had. The man claimed having been fooled by Obadiah, and pleaded to Tony not to fire him. Tony did, and after a few weeks, got the notice that he had committed suicide. 

Andrew was a dead man, that’s why Tony couldn’t recognize him. When another dead man walks into his cell as he sits on bed, cradling his bruising temple, Tony isn’t surprised. 

“Isn’t it lovely, to reunite again with old friends” Obadiah says, closing the door behind him. He doesn’t move from the door, and raises a brow at Tony’s silence. “You don’t seem too surprised to see me. Considering you left me buried behind a burning building”

“Roaches are hard to kill.” 

It’s been almost an hour since Tony regained consciousness, screamed and kicked at the door for Peter, and cried a good amount of frustration on the floor. He has had time to think about Obadiah, of how he never saw the body, and about some comments he used to make about enhanced people and their possibilities. He notices that, under the thick beard he has, Obadiah carries a nasty scar from his neck to his lip. One of his eyes is burned beyond repair, possibly, and his left arm is made of metal. The man limps as he walks towards Tony and sits on the bed – and Tony doesn’t fight, as much as he wants to drop that building on him again, because he has the most precious thing to him on his grasp. 

“It took me two years to wake up” Obadiah ignores Tony. Like many people were doing this days, it seems. “And when I did, the pain was so bad that I wasn’t fully conscious for three months. By the time I was aware of things, I was missing an arm, an eye, four fingers of my foot, three ribs, a kidney and a lung, and everything else ran on a machine” 

“Andrew didn’t kill himself”

“No, he didn’t. It’s easier to operate when you’re dead” he chuckles. “We were something larger than me – something larger than a failed attempt to kill you. Roaches are hard to kill, so we hid in the deepest pit of earth and healed. Healed until we were strong enough not to fail again, until there were no avengers left to take care of. Because we were ready to strike way before Ultron. But it would have been hard with little old cap and the red haired bitch besides you, you know?” 

Tony knows, even if Obadiah doesn’t say it. Now, there is no team to look out of him because it was destroyed after the accords. He’s no idiot – he knows Steve is hiding in Wakanda with Bucky, healing what HYDRA did, and that Wanda and Vision are someone in Norway pretending they’re no longer superheroes. Rhodey, the only one who could have put up a fight for him, is busy trying to walk again and in the army. That leads him to his next thought – how Peter being taken with him is no mistake. The only person who he has been close to with after the accords have been the kid, who makes him believe again in trust and love.

“We were a little bit down after the Ultron thing. Then we saw you with that insect that you call kid” Tony’s arm tenses. “Adorable Peter Parker, who talks too much and is just the key to Tony Stark’s heart” 

“If you have something against me, then do it” Tony blurts out, unable to hold back anymore. “I’m here, I won’t fight. Or maybe I do, and I send you to where you belong. But Peter has nothing to do with it.”

“It has everything to do with this, Tones”

“He doesn’t!” Tony turns around and screams. “He’s just a kid! A kid! You’re torturing and experimenting on him because you’re a coward! You’ve always been much of a coward to face your problems – and weak. Because if you weren’t you would have stopped licking my father’s boots a long time ago”

He knows he touches something deep when Obadiah’s gaze turns dark. He has known the man long enough to notice that he wants to step forwards – to comply Tony’s promise and take it all out on him, because he’s the man who trapped Obadiah under a building and who ruined his life. But again, it’s been years since he last saw him, and it catches him by surprise when Obadiah drops the scary eyes and laughs loudly, a joke only he understands. 

“I tried playing by the rules once, Tony. I tried to make it right, to convince you to take a step backwards and let me handle things. But you had to be the hero, and now you’re paying the price” Obadiah gets up limps towards the door, where Tony can hear people moving. “I won’t kill you. No one in this place will put a hand on you because Tones, you would welcome death any day at any time – I might be a coward, but you are broken. It’s a shame you had to get attached to the insect” 

The door opens and Andrew walks in, nodding to Obadiah. They say something that Tony can’t catch – too busy regretting bringing Peter to Germany, ever thinking that by his side the kid would be safe. Pepper, Happy, Rhodey. Everyone out there gets hurt in some moment because of him, of his past and choices. And he can’t never do anything about it. Now, it’s the kid – the brightest soul he has ever met, who pets Dummy when he’s in the lab and takes out the olives of his pizza. 

However, he doesn’t have time to drown in his own guilt. Obadiah gives him a look that gives him chills down his spine, and Andrew exits the room.

“Maybe I’ll let some of the guys have a round with him later. They would kill for a beautiful, young boy like him, you know?” Obadiah hints, and Tony sees red. 

“I’ll kill you. I’ll tear you into a new one, I swear”

“I was kidding! We still have a long way to go, Tony” he opens the door a bit wider, and Marcus walks in. “Enjoy the night, although I doubt any of you will be sleeping anything at all”

The door closes and Tony is again alone with Peter and his thoughts. He notices that the boy is quiet, that there are no sounds or shaking from his part. Besides, he doesn’t have to wait to walk towards the corner they always drop him at, because the ‘blink’ is back and the light on the cell turns green, making him move his legs. He already has tears running down his cheeks when he reaches Peter, and he doesn’t know what’s bigger – if the awful guilt he feels because of what it’s happing, or if the utter desperation at knowing there is nothing to do to take them out of the situation. As always, his thoughts have to wait because there are bigger things to worry about, he discovers with a soundless yell. Any trace of voice or tears get stuck on his throat when he finally sees Peter, curled in the same tight ball since he was brought for the first time, but with his eyes open and letting Tony see the middle of his naked chest.

Where a hole lays in between barely covered by a rusty, old car battery that Peter is carrying on his arms. On top of it, Tony notices some bloody wound that has black edges. When he moves, he can see the word _INSECT_ craved on Peter’s chest.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you want an epilogue? Let me know what you think! Any comment or kuddos is appreciated!!!

They let Tony have Peter for more than one night, even if he isn’t sure how much time is that. It’s only natural, then, than he gets more time, because it’s by far the worst thing that has ever happened to any of them, and Tony can barely be there for Peter when he’s drowning in his own panic. It hit too close to home when he learned that, the day of the freezer, he was also water boarder, drowned into a tub until he had water in his lungs and couldn’t breathe. The arc reactor is another thing, a new level that has Tony gasping on the ground fighting for some oxygen he doesn’t have. It takes Peter moving with the battery to make him get back to the real world.

Still, during what he guesses is night time, there are too many close calls to fainting and leaving Peter alone with his own tragedy. He finds shame on the fact that is Peter who holds him that night, with the battery in between as Tony thinks about Obadiah, about the week they have been locked in a cell god knows where with no help, about Peter and the broken toes, fingers, ripped nails, frozen ears and hole in the chest. He has a hard time telling time apart, but then he becomes aware of the real world and notice that it has been longer than usual. 

Tony then takes his time to assess the damage done. He makes Peter lay on the floor, helping him to move the battery and pointily ignoring the pained gasps that leave the boy. 

“How did they make it?” Tony whispers. He has cleaned his hands before touching his chest, and tries to be as careful as possible. The battery stands tall and wide against the pale chest, where now Tony can count the Peter’s ribs. “This looks – did they _cut_ it?

“I… passed out” Peter whispers back. “But they put me on the table and took the tools. I don’t think…. I-I don’t… uh, maybe there is no, s-shrapnel? We could… take it o-out?”

“Even if there wasn’t any shrapnel, I don’t think that’s a good idea, Petey. It’s in your chest, too close to vital organs”

Because saying that there is a hole in your chest that right now is plugged and that could possibly make you bleed to death wasn’t a cool choice of words. He caressed the car battery, and Peter gripped his wrist to control the movement; he doesn’t dare to look up to Peter, who has tears running down his cheeks. Moving to the next imminent problem, he looks to the words craved in Peter’s chest. The ‘i’ is made out of a long lash and a deep puncture, the ‘n’ with three deep gashes, the ‘s’ and ‘e’ look deeper painful than the rest, the ‘c’ is poorly done, and the final ‘t’ is still bleeding. 

Tony brings a wet rag to Peter’s chest and cleans it as good as he can, even if it just means wiping the blood away. Eventually, it’s clean enough to read INSECT perfectly, and Peter burst out crying. He hasn’t openly sobbed since he came, probably because Tony was the one crying and panicking at the moment. But now he can clearly see the hole on his chest, the vibrates and makes a horrible pressure on his chest. He still has a finger that hasn’t healed right, the throbbing random pains on his arm that act up every now and then, and the constant feeling of being frozen again. 

“I-I don’t want it anymore” he cries. Again, Tony can just hold him, nothing more. He can’t burst the door open, he can’t break free or make anything better. “Mister Stark, I want it to stop”

“I know” he repeats himself once more because what else is there to say? That he’s sorry? That he understand the pain on his chest because he went through the same? Only that he was thirty, an asshole that deserved it, that had it because he was going to die – not on purpose, and that he cried like a baby for days after it. “I know”

Tony loses track of time once more if he ever had one. Peter ends up throwing up just from crying, and while Tony manages to fall asleep for a short half an hour, he wakes up to find him scratching at his chest, the wounds of the word bleeding again. The car battery stops Peter from moving too much, and it’s too heavy for two people who have been barely eating and sleeping for a week. Still, Tony carries it as Peter makes his business in the small bucket, and tries to ease the pain of moving it by massaging the sore muscles.  
It’s not enough, it will never be. 

-

It’s been four days more, four nights of Peter being brought in with a new world of pain, of suffering, in which Tony can just be a spectator. The hole in the chest – because Tony doesn’t want to call it an arc reactor, since it’s still the car battery – has skin around it, making it look even worse. Peter has to carry the battery around, with the little strength he has left, because if he lets it go, the gravity will make its thing and cause an irreparable damage. That’s why Tony insists on holding it for him at night, while the boy rests the best he can. The word on his chest is almost gone, which doesn’t mean they can’t see them. Without a proper, extra caloric diet and enough sleep, Peter’s healing is lacking off. 

And they know it.

On the eighth night, Peter comes into the cell holding the battery close to his chest and looking around wildly – Andrew tested his enhanced senses by blasting a low, deep beeping for the whole day. Peter doesn’t hear him, but let’s himself be comforted by Tony. On the ninth night, Marcus brings Peter on a stretcher, leaves him on the floor and takes it back. Tony learns that half of his ribs are broken, and the other half are cracked. They don’t heal, but Andrew doesn’t care.

On the tenth night, Peter cries on Tony’s arms because they wanted to test how much could he spend without breathing, and it made the battery on his chest malfunction. It electrocuted him and Andrew decided to bring him sooner, to give him more time to rest. And tonight, Marcus drops a nearly blind Peter on Tony’s arms. 

“Four?”

“No, bud” Tony sighs, moving his hand closer to his chest, where Peter is resting. “Try again”

“I don’t know. I think – I think they aren’t all up, but I’m not sure” Peter closes his eyes and ignore Tony once more, curling against him. And Tony can’t tell him to keep trying because that’s the only time Peter can rest. “It’s fine. At least it’s not dark anymore”

“Not that you’re missing anything important. Same old three walls, boring as ever. If this keeps going, I’m gonna have to ask them to hang something. Maybe a poster of Star Wars” he tries to joke.

He misses Peter laugh, more than ever. Before they were kidnapped, he enjoyed Peter talking his ear off but never realized how much – how much he would miss Peter rambling about school, his friends or the cat he saved on patrol, and the squishy laugh that he had when he couldn’t control it. Now, he is lucky if he gets to see Peter smile before he’s taken in the morning. Even when he does, his smile is hollow and sad. The teen has stopped asking about when they are going to be rescued, and talks less and less.

They are in silence for a while, Tony running his hand through the curly, sweaty hair and massaging Peter’s skull. His hair is longer now too, greasier and knotted. No matter how hard Tony tries to unknot it at night; when morning comes, he’s dragged away and probably maneuvered by grabbing his hair. He suppress the though by pressing a soft kiss to the teens forehead, relieved when he’s met with cold skin. 

Lately, he’s been rising a fever. It has probably something to do with the car battery and the infection that surrounds it. It makes Peter a little delirious and lost, and once, he called Tony ‘dad’. He would have let his heart melt at the name if he wouldn’t have been referred as Ben the next time. None of them have said anything about it.

“I heard Andrew talking with Obadiah today” Peter breaks the silence, playing with a loose wire of the car batter. “Outside the room”

“About what?”

“ ‘Bout tomorrow. They want to see how much I can run. Marcus brought a running machine with lots of wires and stuff, and Obadiah wanted to try today. But Andrew was saying that it could be dangerous with the car battery. They saw me listening and walked out of the room” Peter explained. “I really don’t want to try that”

“I’m sorry, kid” Tony doesn’t know what else to say. 

Before any of them can dwell on the thought for any longer, there is a crashing noise from outside the cell, pretty far. Usually, their captors make everything in their power to keep them isolated from the noise, so it’s weird to know there is something out there. Another moment of silence and another crash makes Tony stand up and tell Peter to stay there with a stern look.

He takes shaky steps to the door and leans against it. He has lost weight too since they were brought in, and his hands are swollen and red from punching the door and not getting an answer. Still, he leans against it and listens. He listens to the crashes that sound too far away from the cell to the scream that comes from the right part of wherever they are and to the guns being fired. It takes him a while to realize that neither Marcus, Andrew nor Obadiah have guns, and that they wouldn’t make so much noise unless something else was happing and Tony didn’t know what. 

Then, there was a flying-metal like sound very, very close to the door, and Tony doesn’t give himself to find any familiarity on it – he runs/limps towards Peter and falls to his side, gathering the teen on his arms and hiding the battery from anyone outside. The light has stopped shinning, and Tony wonders if he’s allowed to hold Peter. Is he? Or is Andrew going to open the door and drag the teen away to make another monstrosity?

Barely, he thinks that he shouldn’t be thinking like that. He should be trying to open the door and getting Peter out of there – but after following the horrible rules for more than a week, he’s afraid. Tony is so afraid that can’t get to move a muscle apart from hugging Peter close to him. The door shakes as someone slams his body against it, and Peter lets out an involuntary yelp. He’s gripping Tony as hard as he’s being gripped, both of them protecting each other from whatever is on the other side. 

Peter should be worried about the ache on his chest from the uncomfortable position he’s in, or the tingling feeling on his eyes that doesn’t stop. However, not being able to see clearly doesn’t stop him from recognizing the figure that throws the door down and walks into the cell. Shield ready and armor on, Captain America stands tall and glorious on the door. And Peter knows what he did, to Tony and his parents, but he has never been happier to see anyone. 

“Tony” Steve whispers, as if he can’t believe he’s really there. He takes a step forward. “We were looking for so long – we thought you wouldn’t be here. Are you hurt? Do you need help getting up?”

“Obadiah –“ Tony tries to explain with a sore throat. He feels like falling asleep, no matter how much he hates Steve or what he did. Just the sight of the avenger makes him feel safe. 

“Was working with Ross. He told him about Spiderman and let him take you and the kid as long as he ran some experiments for him” Steve gives a look to Peter, who has his mouth open wide. “Natasha is taking care of them right now. We have the jet ready, come on. Can you walk?”

Tony lets himself be pulled up by Steve, almost loosing balance from how strong is his grip. After more than a week in that cell, everything looks brighter and louder. And he can see the sorrow in Steve’s eyes, the apology that he doesn’t say but he means. He tries not to think about him diving that shield on his chest, aiming for his neck and confessing knowing who killed his parents. Instead, he turns around and between the two superheroes help Peter up. The kid can’t hold himself, unlike Tony, and falls on Steve arms.

Tony has to remind himself that Steve is safe, that he wouldn’t hurt Peter no matter what happened between them. It’s hard when the kid has been through so much lately, but he lets Steve handle Peter. He doesn’t miss the look of horror when he notices the multiple injuries lingering on Peter’s body – from the bloody chest and car battery to the bruises and cuts on his body. He doesn’t bother pretending Peter isn’t spiderman, because if they know, it doesn’t matter; there are bigger problems to face. 

“Mister Stark” Peter extends a hand towards the darkest shadow of the room, hoping it’s the person he needs. “Mister Stark?”

“I’m here. Right here, Peter” he shifts closer to Steve, and tries to hold the battery for Peter. “He can’t see. He’s regaining sight but he can’t walk alone. And – and the battery isn’t long enough to touch the ground. You can’t let it fall, Rogers. The… the…”

“I won’t” Steve assures him. 

“No, you don’t understand. There is a _hole_ on his chest. The battery is sealed because of the healing skin, but if it breaks –“

“Tony” blue eyes meet brown ones, and for a moment, it seems like nothing have changed. They are once more getting ready for another mission, Steve and Tony working together like a team and not plotting against each other. “You can trust me. I won’t let him fall”

“Can we leave?” Peter whispers, looking down to Steve’s chest and frowning. “I think – I hear someone coming” 

They don’t need anything else, and with a worried glance from Steve, Tony starts walking. It feels like his knees are going to give up any second, but he can’t ask him for help – because if someone comes, he can’t fight, and he’s gonna need Steve to fight and carry Peter at the same time. The hall is empty, lights flickering and no doors. It’s the first time Tony is out of the cell, and it certainly looks like a prison.

He’s ready to go and make a run for the door, adrenaline running through his body like burning fire. But he notices there is no one behind him; Steve and Peter are by the door, the latest looking around wildly.

The moment Tony stepped out of the door, Peter lost sight of him, and even if he knew he would never leave him, there is a dreading feeling on his chest. Every time he got out of the cell, was to complete some sadistic experiment – and now he’s out of the cell again, and he can’t see Tony. He panics. Peter tries to move out of Steve’s arms and go back to the cell, pushing with weak hands at the broad chest. To the captain, he looks like a wounded puppy. He knows that boy is Spiderman, who webbed his shield and held the structure he threw on him. Steve looks at Tony, and the man limps back.

“Peter. It’s fine” Tony is careful with the car battery and caress Peter’s cheek. “I’m right by your side, I promise. We’re getting out”

“We have to go” Steve urgers him because he can hear them now. “They’re closer”

“Be careful” Tony repeats once more, and situates himself next to him. “Please”

Steve nods, and takes notice at the immense pain and worry in his eyes. That’s not the Tony who jokes in missions, who talks his ear out about lab stuff that he knows he can’t understand. Steve just sees a scared father, looking out for his son. He nods again, and starts walking.

They can’t go as fast as the captain would have liked. Peter can’t walk on his own, so Steve has to carry most of his weight. Under his right arm, he has the car batter, and with his left is holding the teenager, that is leaning dangerously to the side. Peter’s other side is covered by Tony, who doesn’t walk too fast neither. Still, he manages to keep a steadying grip on Peter and walk on his own.

A big door appears soon, that should be the exit. The team had decided that, once he got Spiderman and Tony, Steve has to leave to the jet as soon as he can. The rest of them will meet them there eventually, but taking them out is the first priority. That also means that Steve is on his own. When they’re about to reach for the door, Tony finally hears them from behind. There are five guards, dressed like Marcus, heading towards them. They’re not shooting, but they have guns and long sticks that look electrified.

At the front, is Obadiah Stane, angry. 

They reach them before Tony can think of anything else; thankfully, Steve does. He lands a punch on the first man, who falls back and knocks over his partner. Obadiah is shouting orders from behind, and Steve barely has time to pass the battery to Tony and start defending himself. He wishes he could do more, that he could help Steve or make Peter stop cowering away. But he’s too busy staying conscious.

“To the right!”

Another figure joins the fight, and an agent that was getting too close to Steve gets knocked down. A red, flying android flies past them and returns to its owner; then, Sam Wilson steps out and shoots the man before he can get up. More guards appear from the opposite corridor and start shouting louder. They’re too many, and the door is right behind him; but Peter won’t move on his own and Tony can’t walk there with him. And he’s not about to let him go.

“You gotta leave” Sam screams to Steve. “I’ve got it. Nat’s on her way”

“I can’t –“

“You can!” 

Steve looks to Tony and Peter and then to Sam, and knows that it’s just not the time. He throws his shield once more; the more agents that fall the more that rise. They seem to be really roaches that come from the ground, or that multiplicate themselves. Maybe he should have listened to Sam at the moment, or maybe it wouldn’t have matter. Natasha ends up arriving a few minutes late, and by the time Steve decides he’s good to go to the jet and starts making his way to Tony and Peter, Obadiah has walked through the mass of avengers and agents without anyone notice. 

There is still that bit of compenetrating that Steve and Tony used to have, so as soon as Steve looks at Obadiah Tony notices him too. The man takes out his gun at the same time Steve is tackled to the ground by a new agent, that squares him right in the jaw. Tony is quick enough to push Peter away, against the wall, and avoid the first shot. He notices Obadiah has a nasty gash on his forehead, that is bleeding slowly, and his mechanic eye is gone. 

He hasn’t walked through that fight intact, and that gives Tony time to punch him in the chest. Obadiah loses his breath for a second, drops the gun from the sudden pain of a rib cracking – _like the ones you broke a few days ago, asshole_ – and Tony picks it up. He notices Obadiah moving too fast for his starved and sleep-craved brain to catch up, and he falls to the ground when he kicks his right leg.

There is a sickening crunch of his nose hitting the nose, and his hands lands under his body. Tony manages to keep a grip on the gun, while Obadiah hits him at the back of the head. He feels the world spinning dangerously; another kick, that stops him from getting up. Obadiah tries to take the gun from him, and Steve yells his name. 

He knows, that if Obadiah takes the gun everything ends. Because he’s not gonna shoot him, when his heart lays on another place. So with a strength that comes from somewhere he can’t understand, he pushes himself away and fires. And he stares at Obadiah’s eyes for the second time as he dies, eyes that used to be of comfort and trust, and that now are the reason of his nightmares and fears. Tony wonders, briefly, what would his father say if he was alive. If he would condemn Obadiah, or agree with his actions. 

Blood coats Obadiah’s chest, dripping to the ground in slow motion. His hands shake and the gun falls the ground; he thinks about how he has just killed someone, how this time he won’t be coming back. But he knows he would do it again and again, because it means Peter is safe. Just then, Tony looks at Peter, who is leaning against the wall looking pale and sick. He has the battery on his arms, hugging it loosely against his chest. He’s looking at Tony with wide, scared brown eyes.

The man is busy drowning in relief, thinking that it’s all over and that he can finally go home with his kid. He doesn’t see Obadiah not falling to the ground, but looking at Peter, and he doesn’t stop him from grabbing Peter’s thin arm and dragging him towards his falling body.

Peter doesn’t fall, because Tony is there to catch him, and Obadiah does. So does the car battery, that slams against the ground with a loud, tarrying noise. If Tony hadn’t caught Peter, he would have fallen with it – but he is between his arms, and small, thin layer of skin that kept the battery of place is ripped. He hears Peter gasping, the oxygen not reaching _anything_ , and the blood oozing out. 

The avengers, that are almost done with the agents turn around and scream his name, and Tony can only watch and Peter bleeds out on his arms. They both slide to the ground, Tony’s eyes becoming blurry with tears. Peter searches his eyes in panic, in terror.

“ _Dad_ ” Peter stays, blood coming out of his mouth and coating his chin and Tony’s chest.

He screams. 

-

Tony is told that he passed out. It’s ironic how he can’t remember being kidnapped in the first place and how he got out at the end. He wakes up in a clean, white room, that he recognizes as the med bay. It smells like antiseptic, a nice change from the smell of blood, body fluids and rust. It makes him feel safe, even if something inside him tells him that he shouldn’t feel this way. The sheets are soft against his body, and the bed is so comfy that he feels like he might moan. He notices something hurting, more like his whole body, but he also knows he’s on pain meds. A cast on his arm, something soft and round on his neck, and two needles on his hands. 

He opens his eyes to find a soft lamp on the right side of the bed, lighting hospital room. Pepper is sleeping soundly on the chair, one of her hands resting on the bed besides him. Tony notices the bags under her eyes and the messy bun that she wouldn’t wear anywhere unless it’s completely necessary or an emergency. She’s wearing one of his t-shirts from a band, wide sweatpants and sneakers. 

Tony closes his eyes and falls asleep.

The second times he wake up he’s a bit more aware of the pain he’s feeling. His arms throbs and his nose feels uncomfortably stuffed. There is more light around him, this time a natural one, and more sounds too. Some of them are from the machines around him, and others are voices from the hall. It takes him a while to figure who is talking and what is saying, but he’s able to identify Helen Cho and Steve. Their words are soft and low, so he doesn’t catch anything else than his name. However, he can hear the deep worry on her voices. He falls asleep again.

It happens a few times. Sometimes, he manages to open his eyes and finds Pepper or Rhodey looking at him, with a soft smile. Sometimes they talk and other they don’t. The first time, they call for the nurse, but by the time she arrives Tony is asleep again. After a few failed attempts, he manages to talk the tenth time he wakes up.

Helen is there too, with Pepper and Steve. They are all looking at him with a hopeful yet worried eyes, that don’t go unnoticed. Tony tries to remember what has he done now to make them mad, but his brain still feels a little bit dizzy.

“How are you feeling?” Helen asks, looking over the machines. 

“Like going back to sleep. I think I’m getting old, I was able to survive without sleep better” Tony groans, not daring to move. “What happened?”

“Your blood sugar is still too low, so you might feel a little light headed. And you’re still missing fluids” Helen continues, ignoring or not hearing Tony. “I think you’re good for another pain meds dose.”

“Yeah, I think I’ll pass. I feel fine”

“Tony, you’re not –“

“They make me sleep and I want to stay conscious enough to remember what the fuck happened” Tony cut Pepper off. He doesn’t feel bad for the hurt look on her face, or for his harsh tone. But he’s tired of feeling like he’s on drugs. “Cap? Are you gonna tell me?”

“Maybe it’s best to wait” Steve answers after some seconds. “You’ve just woken up”

“And I don’t know for how much longer I’ll be up. So what –?”

Tony doesn’t finish his own sentence, because he’s looking at Steve’s eyes and he recognizes the shame and hurt in them. He saw them before, when he broke in the cell Peter and he were being held. Because he was with Peter. _Peter_. Peter, and the car battery falling to the ground, with Obadiah and his dead body. Tony barely catching his kid and thinking that it’s all over, that they’re safe and sound. Peter and the blood on his lips, falling like a cascade. Soaking his shirt because of the bleeding _hole_ on his chest. Peter calling him dad and Tony screaming. Peter’s eyes rolling back and him becoming a dead weight against Tony’s hold.

Steve yelling his name, and then nothing.

“Peter” 

“Tony, wait –“

“Peter!” 

The machines around him start beeping loudly when he rips the IV on his hand, a stream of flood hitting Pepper’s t shirt. Steve runs to his side and he presses hard on his shoulders, ignoring the pain he’s causing; because if he doesn’t he’s sure Tony will be bolting out of the room. He has seen that energy, that strength before, when Tony thought Peter was in danger and killed Obadiah. So he doesn’t risk Tony getting out of the bed, and presses him down. Tony trashes, screams at him and hits his arms. Helen presses a clean gauze to his hand, that is getting blood everywhere.  
And then Pepper is moving and moving a white curtain Tony hadn’t seen before, that leads to an identical bed with a small person on it. That side of the room is very similar to his own, except for the people in there. While he has Pepper, Steve and Helen, on the other side, there are only two people. May Parker is looking as if she had just woken up, with red eyes and disheveled hair. She looks much more skinner than what he remembers, and is wearing an oversized NY police department sweatshirt. She must have woken up from the commotion, and is looking at Tony with wide, surprised eyes. 

Her eyes get glassy, and Tony looks to the next person. Peter Parker is laying on the bed next to Tony, looking smaller than ever. His hair is clean and soft, but his face is a giant bruise. He has stiches on his cheek, a black eye and an open lip. Hands with dried blood and casts on his fingers. The sheets are resting on his waist, so Tony can see his chest. Covered in bandages, with a familiar bulge on the middle. Some blood has stained the gauzes, and Tony can see the familiar bruises on his sides from the broken ribs through the white cloth.

“Oh my – Tony!” May is by his bed the next second, and instead of the punch he thinks he deserves, he gets a hug. “I was so worried. You’re up!”

“May” he croaks out, still looking at the kid. “Peter?”

“Natasha managed to reinsert the car battery before it was too late. They brought you here and we were on him as soon as you landed” Helen explains, something sad and pained in her look. “He had already lost a lot of blood, and the car batter was barely holding him together. There was – well, the hole was there. He was… missing a part”

Tony remembers Andrew talking about the rules, how if he held Peter after the light turned red he would get ‘something removed’. He wondered if having a part of his chest ripped was in his plans. Peter has a large tube on his mouth, two IV on his hands and other tubes that disappear down the bandages. There was a constant dripping of blood in and out his body. May squeezes his shoulder, and Cho keeps talking. 

“If it had been under normal circumstances, we would have used his own skin to regrow the tissue. But he wasn’t healing, his blood was infected and there were other wounds to take care of. Pepper… she brought your old arc reactor” Helen informs him. “It was the only way”

“Is he okay?” he asks. “Is he gonna be okay?”

“We don’t know. They had to put an artificial pacemaker on his heart, and his brain was too much time without blood” May answers this time, looking at her nephew. She covers her mouth when a sob breaks free. “My baby”

Tony is awake, alive, and safe, but he feels like dying.

-

They’re alone when Peter wakes up, because May has gone to sleep to their apartment, Pepper is sleeping upstairs and Steve is out. Helen has said that Peter had been aware during surgery, so he might be less confused than Tony. Still, Tony rips carefully the IVs and orders FRIDAY not to say anything until Peter tells him to. Because he remembers the scared look on the teenager when Steve appeared, and he doesn’t want to see it again. He walks towards the teen’s bed and stays there, his hand on Peter’s cheek – like he has done so many times lately – while the boy becomes aware. 

The tube came out yesterday, and there is only a small cannula on his nose. Peter tries to bat it away, until Tony grips his hand and takes it to his chest. Where Peter can feel his heart beating. Brown, bambi eyes open slowly and meet Tony’s, and there is no panic in them. Because Peter trusts him, no matter that the experiments had been his fault, and that Tony wasn’t the one saving him. 

“Hey there, Pete” Tony whispers, and Peter rubs his face against Tony’s palm. “Good to see you awake. I was starting to think I would have to give your Star Wars stuff to Ned”

“Mine” Peter mumbles. 

“Yeah, yours. How are you feeling? Anything hurts?” Tony thinks about the broken toes, ripped nails, pierced skin, drowned lungs, hole in the chest, craved letters, and realizes that it’s not the best question to ask. “Helen said you’ll be okay. You’re okay. You’re safe”

“Dad”

This time Tony lets out a watery laugh, because it feels _so fucking good_. Peter drags his hand to the arc reactor, that is now uncovered. Two days after Tony woke up for real, they took the bandages out and Tony could see the blue light that filled Peter’s chest. Since then, he has been working no stop to do everything in his power to make things better. 

Peter draws the edges of the reactor with the pads of his fingers, while looking at Tony. He looks at Tony’s chest, at Tony, and then at his own chest. He doesn’t have to ask, so Tony nods and the teen sighs. His eyes turn glassy and Tony wastes no time to fit in the small hospital bed, looking out for injuries, bruises and IVs. As if it’s his place, Peter fits inside Tony’s arms and lays his head on his shoulder. It feels good to lay on a bed with him, not on the cold floor. 

“You’re okay”

For now, Tony thinks. Because he will need to learn to live with the constant pressure on his chest, that never really goes away. With the phantoms pains that every now and then run his body when he lest expected. Peter will live with the knowledge of what happened in that cell, and outside it. Tony has been already having nightmares about the green light and the rules, and he knows Peter will be having them too. But for now, he drags his kid closer until he can feel little puffs of air against his neck, and Peter’s heartbeat against his side.

“You’re okay”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm on instagram @irondadiscanon and on Tumblr, @imaginesmai!!!!

**Author's Note:**

> I'm in instagram by @irondadiscanon! If you like irondad artists, go check it out ❤ I make fic recs too every now and then. I also have tumblr, not very active but always down for a request in @imaginesmai


End file.
